Rams receiver and kick return specialist Pharoh Cooper will get a second opinion on his ankle injury this week but will miss “at least a few weeks” and could require surgery, Coach Sean McVay said. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

THOUSAND OAKS — The Rams, mindful of injuries, withheld most of their starters from the preseason, but they weren’t able to escape their regular-season opener without a significant loss.

Pharoh Cooper, the Rams’ Pro Bowl-selection return specialist, apparently suffered a serious ankle injury during the third quarter of Monday’s victory over Oakland. Coach Sean McVay said Tuesday that Cooper will get a second opinion this week but will miss “at least a few weeks” and could require surgery.

Cooper apparently suffered the injury after he fielded a poor punt on a bounce in the third quarter. McVay first said Cooper has “some loose fragments” in his ankle, then described the injury as a bad sprain.

“I remember when I was playing,” McVay said, “I ended up with a bad ankle sprain and they said, you’d almost be better off breaking it, just because of some of the ways it can heal. It might require him to go in there and get that thing fixed.”

Cooper, a former fourth-round pick, is a lightly used receiver who has been a strong returner. Cooper made the Pro Bowl in 2017, his third season, after he averaged 12.5 yards per punt return and 27.4 yards per kickoff return, with one touchdown.

Sign up for Home Turf and get exclusive stories every SoCal sports fan must read, sent daily. Subscribe here.

The search for Cooper’s replacement is complicated because Mike Thomas, the backup kick returner, suffered a groin injury against the Raiders, and McVay said Thomas could miss multiple weeks.

Cooper Kupp made a fair catch on a fourth-quarter punt return, and he could handle those duties, but Kupp also is a large part of the Rams’ offense as a receiver.

Undrafted free agent JoJo Natson handled most of the kickoff and punt-return duties during preseason games, but the Rams cut him before the start of the season.

“Whether we handle that internally or look outside to figure that role out, those are things we’ve kind of been discussing, and in terms of making that final decision, that probably will be something that we decide on in the next day or so.”

REST TIME

Because of the short week, the Rams decided to call off Wednesday’s practice. They will practice on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning in advance of Sunday’s game against Arizona.

McVay did not disclose any injuries beyond those to Cooper and Thomas, and indicated that linebacker Mark Barron (Achilles), who missed the Oakland game, will start the week as “questionable.”

ROSTER MOVE

The Rams made a practice-squad swap on Tuesday, as they added offensive lineman Aaron Neary and dropped offensive lineman Jeremiah Kolone. Neary was with the Rams throughout training camp.

The Rams also lost rookie offensive lineman Jamil Demby off waivers to Detroit.

NICE DEBUTS

Two of the Rams’ biggest offseason acquisitions, receiver Brandin Cooks and cornerback Marcus Peters, played big roles against the Raiders. Peters had an interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter and Cooks caught five passes for 87 yards.

Peters, an Oakland native, got the game ball from McVay in the postgame locker room.

“Oh man, I appreciate everything that this organization has been doing for me since I’ve been here,” Peters said. “It feels good to be around here, it feels good to be an L.A. Ram.”

Cooks showed a strong rapport with quarterback Jared Goff and nearly connected on a couple deep throws. Cooks also helped the Rams when he drew two pass-interference penalties, which moved the ball a total of 87 yards.

“He stretches the field because of his speed,” Goff said. “We threw enough deep balls to kind of show that off. Unfortunately, we didn’t hit on any of them, but had those two pass interferences which were huge and moved the ball down the field. … He’s really intricate with his routes and does a great job and has been a great addition for us so far.”

Rich Hammond was a high school senior when the Rams left town in 1995, and now he's their beat writer for the Southern California News Group. A native of L.A., Rich broke in at the Daily Breeze as a college freshman and also has covered USC, the Kings, the Lakers and the Dodgers. He still loves sports and telling stories. Don't take the sarcastic tweets too seriously.